Another lyrical, imaginative, dare I say "magical", book from Alice Hoffman. Ms. Hoffman has a remarkable gift for description – when you read her depictions of 17th century Curacao, or Gravesend, Brooklyn, or onboard a pirate's sailing ship, you feel as though you have been transported – and for character development – her cast of characters are all so vivid, physically and emotionally, that they seem to be alive in the room with you as you read.
This book is a "prequel" to Hoffman's Practical Magic and The Rules of Magic, and covers the earliest story of the Owens family of sorceresses, and naturally, the subject matter lends itself to magical realism, which is a major component in many of Hoffman's works. It also draws on Jewish history, culture and traditions, which were so important to The Dovekeepers, The Marriage of Opposites and The World that We Knew.
Feminism is also an important element, as her characters chafe against the mores of the societies in which they live, where the roles for women are so strictly defined and the women who break them are harshly punished, as in the Salem Witch Trials which figure in this novel.
All together, Magic Lessons makes for compelling reading, and while it is not my absolute favorite of Hoffman's works, I consider it a 4-star book.
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